About Benjamin Azan, MD

Ever wish you could get Continuing Medical Education (CME) credit for the Free Open Access Meducation (FOAM) you already consume? We are excited to announce that 10 ALiEM articles are now available for AMA PRA Category 1 CME. This is a pilot program in collaboration with FOAMbase and EB Medicine. There is great content on trauma, geriatrics, pediatrics, critical care, and more. We think CME for FOAM is going to be a great way to increase sustainability for FOAM authors while keeping FOAM 100% free and open access.

We are back this week with a new “Working Smarter” mini-series on Podcasting. An increasing number of individuals and residency programs are starting podcasts, but it’s not always obvious how to get started.

From dead simple set-ups to semi-professional studios, you’ll learn from veterans how to get your voice out to the public, and do it well. In this first installment, we review podcasting gear: the hardware and software you’ll need. The next installment will go over the production work-flow for taking a podcast from an idea to a finished product.

We are continuing our series with Dr. Dara Kass (@darakass). In addition to being director of Undergraduate Medical Education at NYU/Bellevue in New York City, Dr. Kass has recently unveiled a new initiative: FemInEM. Along with Dr. Jenny Beck-Esmay (@jbeckesmay) and several superstar section editors, Dr. Kass has debuted a site focused on professional development for women in Emergency Medicine. But FemInEM is more than just a blog: it seeks to bring open access principles to the traditional model of membership based professional women’s networks like Academy for Women in Academic Emergency Medicine (AWAEM) and American Association of Women Emergency Physicians (AAWEP). FemInEM will be a hub for mentorship, growth, leadership, wellness, and more, all specially geared to women in Emergency Medicine. How does Dr. Kass go about managing this ambitious initiative, full time work, medical students and family? She shares her insights into working efficiently.

Today we have the privilege of hearing from Dr. Azita G. Hamedani MD, MPH, MBA, founding chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health (UWSMPH). Under her leadership, the department has grown exponentially, growing from 6 to 36 residents, from 14 to 45 faculty while experiencing a 100% increase in patient volume. For showing exemplary skills in leadership, clinical quality, operations and healthcare finance she has been awarded – amongst other awards – both ACEP’s Outstanding ED Medical Director of the Year Award and the Association of Women in Academic Emergency Medicine Early Career Award. But beyond numbers and awards Dr. Hamedani is known for fostering the academic spirit at UWSMPH, elevating the department renowned to a national level. Below, she shares her tips on efficiency and getting things done.

After a long break, we are back with a heavy hitter: Dr. Reuben Strayer (@emupdates). He is the author of EMUpdates.com, a treasure trove of emergency medicine wisdom. Highlights include a set of genuinely useful checklists, many airway pearls, an approach to opioid misuse in the ED, and much much more. Dr. Strayer regularly speaks at national and international conferences with a focus on airway management, ketamine, and clinical quality. Beyond his contributions to medical education, Dr. Strayer is regarded by his peers as an exceptional clinician. It is this editor’s opinion that this stems in part from a truly thoughtful and methodical approach which permeates Dr. Strayer’s approach to life. He generously shared his insights into how he works smarter.